“Up until this point, I’ve only been sexually attracted to women,” the Amazing Spider-Man actor, 34, told Out magazine. “My stance toward life, though, is that I always try to surrender to the mystery of not being in charge. I think most people — we’re intrinsically trying to control our experience here, and manage it, and put walls around what we are and who we are. I want to know as much of the garden as possible before I pass — I have an openness to any impulses that may arise within me at any time.”

He continued, “But, if I were to identify, I would identify as heterosexual, and being someone who identifies that way, and who’s taking on this seminal role, my scariest thought was, ‘Am I allowed to do this?’”

Garfield starred in the London production of the play Angels in America last year and will reprise his role as Prior Walter, a gay man battling AIDS during the 1980s crisis, in the upcoming Broadway revival, which opens on March 25.

During his stint in London, the Social Network actor sparked controversy after saying in July 2017 that he was a “gay man right now, just without the physical act.” Later that month, he explained that his comments were taken out of context and that he was referring to his preparation for the role of Prior Walter.

“That’s of course not what I meant at all,” Garfield, who dated Emma Stone for nearly four years until 2015, clarified to the BBC at the time. “That discussion was about this play and how deeply grateful I am that I get to work on something so profound. It’s a love letter to the LGBTQ community. We were talking about, ‘How do you prepare for something so important and so big?’ and I was basically saying, ‘I dive in as fully as I possibly can.’”